Kylie on How to Talk to Pregnant Women, USWNT Legacy & Retirement Surprise with Alex Morgan | Ep. 5

Speaker 1 I'm not gonna lie.

Speaker 1 We're a little under the weather in our house this week, as you can

Speaker 1 tell.

Speaker 1 But that should explain why I have boogers on my shirt right now.

Speaker 1 They're clearly not mine.

Speaker 1 Let's get this podcast started.

Speaker 1 Welcome back to Not Gonna Lie, a wave original brought to you by Duncan. I'm your host, Kylie Kelsey, former Cabrini Cavalier, R-I-P,

Speaker 1 noted doom scroller, and I once had a verbal altercation in a parking lot.

Speaker 1 Yikes. As always, make sure you follow us on social at NGL with Kylie and subscribe to the Not Gonna Lie YouTube channel.

Speaker 1 Coming up on today's episode, like I mentioned last week, baby number four has officially popped.

Speaker 1 So now that I'm showing, I figured now's the perfect time to get honest about what what not to say to pregnant women.

Speaker 1 After that, I'm going to be joined by a guest I truly have no business speaking to, Alex Morgan.

Speaker 1 I'm going to talk to Alex about her retirement, the current state of women's sports, and her motherhood experience as a professional athlete. But before we get to that, we've got some show news.

Speaker 1 Not sure how this happened, but this show, the one you are currently watching or listening to, not going to lie with Kylie Kelsey, has received its first award nomination.

Speaker 1 NGL has been nominated for Best Emerging Podcast at the 2025 iHeart Podcast Awards. So,

Speaker 1 first of all, thank you to the NGLers who have tuned in and have enjoyed the show thus far. You know, I'm always going to be honest with you guys.

Speaker 1 There are a number of podcasts obviously nominated in this category,

Speaker 1 one of which

Speaker 1 I have to tell you, in spite of my entire production team shaking their heads while I say this,

Speaker 1 so true with Caleb Herron.

Speaker 1 I just can't explain how much I enjoy when those clips pop up on my TikTok feed.

Speaker 1 I

Speaker 1 outwardly cackle

Speaker 1 and often cry.

Speaker 1 So

Speaker 1 I have to say it,

Speaker 1 I think that's where that should be headed. Next up, I want to shout out some of you in our mentions.

Speaker 1 You guys are being so supportive during this very difficult time of accepting my minivan fate by sharing what you love about your minivans from Stephanie Stewart on Facebook.

Speaker 1 The sliding doors alone are worth the minivan. No worries about kids dinging other cars or slamming slamming doors.
This is honestly one of the things that has been a driving factor.

Speaker 1 It's not necessarily the dinging other cars because

Speaker 1 right now my girls are so young that they know they can't open the door until mom comes around to the door.

Speaker 1 But

Speaker 1 the idea of getting to open the door for

Speaker 1 car line, like school drop-off, and just pressing a button from the front seat sounds

Speaker 1 lovely.

Speaker 1 Just, it's like release the kraken.

Speaker 1 I love that so much. I, that's what I want to do.
And also, from my ins and out lists,

Speaker 1 I was relieved to see you guys are also on board with my zippered-only baby clothes initiative. Shout out specifically to NGL listener C Ferry on TikTok, who expertly drags buttons.

Speaker 1 Let me introduce you to the the true fucking horror

Speaker 1 of baby clothes.

Speaker 1 Buttons.

Speaker 1 What asshole thought putting buttons that need to go through a hole, especially those stupid loopholes,

Speaker 1 on a feral, squirming, raging alligator?

Speaker 1 Fuck you.

Speaker 2 Fuck you, sir, and I know it's a sir.

Speaker 1 I know it's a sir, because only a sir who's never changed

Speaker 1 a rage demon on a changing table with uh

Speaker 1 buttons yes a million times

Speaker 1 yes

Speaker 1 good god yes you nailed that so hard um

Speaker 1 the idea that people are creating these articles of clothing that have not experienced a child on a changing table and how quickly you are trying to get through that process?

Speaker 1 Yes, it's the only logical explanation. In this same category, a lot of people were in the comments asking if I've used magnetic baby clothes.
And although I think the concept is

Speaker 1 great and

Speaker 1 has a large following,

Speaker 1 I am not part of it. I have found that they are not meant for chubby babies, and I don't don't love the way that they gap when the babies sit up.
So, Ellie, in particular, was our chubbiest baby.

Speaker 1 She would sit up and

Speaker 1 bust out of that thing like a can of biscuits. Zippies all the way.

Speaker 1 You guys also left some very nice comments about my appearance on Jason's new show. They call it late night.
I especially enjoyed this one.

Speaker 1 Bacon said,

Speaker 1 Kylie always looks like she has no idea how she got roped into the next thing. Like, damn it, I did not want to do this.

Speaker 1 Well,

Speaker 1 I do enjoy that 14,000 people liked that comment. That brings me to the inaugural podcast edition of something I like to call Places Kylie has no business being.

Speaker 1 This past week, I made my debut as the announcer on They Call It Late Night on ESPN. Getting roped into this is the perfect way to express how I ended up as the announcer for this.

Speaker 1 My husband asked me to participate

Speaker 1 and

Speaker 1 being

Speaker 1 the supportive wife that I am,

Speaker 1 I said yes

Speaker 1 hesitantly.

Speaker 1 They did

Speaker 1 put up a sign that I did not know was going to be there. I did not know that it was going to be dubbed Kylie's Corner.
I do appreciate that because you guys know how I love to hide in a corner.

Speaker 1 Although it's not really hiding when you have spotlights and a camera on you. So I might need to discuss that with someone.
Queen Emma wrote, do I get nervous for things like this?

Speaker 1 Particularly something like this, I did not get nervous for.

Speaker 1 I do find similarly to our wedding day when I was nervous about walking down the aisle because everyone's eyes were going to be on me. And then the minute I could see Jason, I was like, oh, I'm fine.

Speaker 1 I can get down the aisle. I'll just focus on him.
Similarly to that,

Speaker 1 since I got to watch Jason do his thing and he is the main focus and all of that, and he's crushing it,

Speaker 1 I

Speaker 1 didn't need to get nervous.

Speaker 1 I had very few lines, luckily. Love that for me.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 I also did PA in college for men's lacrosse games. So

Speaker 1 I had a little bit of experience.

Speaker 1 That does it for places Kylie has no business being.

Speaker 1 Moving on to the very special time in the episode where I somehow get even more honest than usual. That's right.
I'm talking about my segment. Can I be honest?

Speaker 1 This week, baby girl has definitely popped, so there's no more hiding her. Stretchy pants are in full force, as is commentary from friends, family, and of course,

Speaker 1 perfect strangers. So I figured I'd take this time to give you guys some do's and don'ts of talking to pregnant women because even if

Speaker 1 just one last person asks me, don't you wish it was a boy? It'll be a win. First,

Speaker 1 and this is a big one:

Speaker 1 don't comment on her size.

Speaker 1 This includes comments like, you're huge. How much weight have you gained? Are you sure it's not twins?

Speaker 1 I still can't believe that people think that

Speaker 1 women who are building a human being want to hear anything about their size.

Speaker 1 Newsflash, they don't. Cut that shit out.

Speaker 1 Do keep your opinion to yourself if someone shares their baby name.

Speaker 1 That's it.

Speaker 1 If she chooses to share it with you, feel privileged enough that you get to know that information. And then promptly tell them that it's beautiful and move the fuck on.

Speaker 1 That's it.

Speaker 1 Don't ask if we're going to keep trying for a boy.

Speaker 1 If another person asks me that,

Speaker 1 I'm warning you right now, you might get dropkicked.

Speaker 1 I don't need to have a boy. And for some reason, I think that you

Speaker 1 want me to have one more than I do.

Speaker 1 Four girls strong? Watch out, world.

Speaker 1 I do not need to have a boy. We were meant to have all girls.

Speaker 1 Do ask your pregnant friend how she's feeling.

Speaker 1 Let's be real here. Asking this question implies that you know she definitely feels like shit,

Speaker 1 and

Speaker 1 you need to make sure that you're prepared to get her honest opinion

Speaker 1 and

Speaker 1 be prepared to receive that in an open-minded way. Don't comment on breastfeeding.

Speaker 1 You know what that is?

Speaker 1 None of your fucking business. The whole breast is best nonsense.

Speaker 1 The only reason you're saying that is to take other women down. Sometimes it's not in the cards, okay?

Speaker 1 Whether it's a latch issue or maybe mom has her own medical need where she's unable to breastfeed.

Speaker 1 Let's just mind our damn business.

Speaker 1 Don't divulge the details of your own traumatic birth experience unprompted.

Speaker 1 On this one, I'm going to say do as I say and not as I do, because I'm not going to lie. I do ask for this.

Speaker 1 I am the person that wants to know every detail of your birth,

Speaker 1 specifically ones that could be described as traumatic, because if I go through birth and it wasn't as bad as that,

Speaker 1 calling it a win. And can I be really honest? With one bonus, do and don't

Speaker 1 do

Speaker 1 ask for permission before touching her belly.

Speaker 1 I still can't believe that people reach out and touch another person's midsection

Speaker 1 without asking permission, specifically when strangers do it. That shit's bananas.

Speaker 1 Keep your hands to yourself.

Speaker 1 It's so simple. Don't touch someone unless they have given you permission.
The bonus, don't

Speaker 1 don't tell me I'm glowing.

Speaker 1 The glow

Speaker 1 you

Speaker 1 think you're seeing

Speaker 1 is my nausea sweats

Speaker 1 that you've mistaken for glowing.

Speaker 1 Okay, so I'm not glowing. Don't tell me that.
I am swollen. I am sweating.
I am nauseous. Don't tell me I'm glowing.

Speaker 1 And that does it for my do's and don'ts of talking to pregnant women.

Speaker 1 Let me know what I missed and what ridiculous things people have felt the need to say to you during your pregnancy at NGL with Kylie.

Speaker 1 Hi, I'm Kylie Kelsey from Not Gonna Lie, and you're watching me do a Dunkin' ad.

Speaker 1 You see what I did there? Like an old Disney channel intro.

Speaker 1 You guys get it. Something else you guys get, my go-to Duncan order, which I can't recommend enough to all of you and just about everyone else I interact with in my life.

Speaker 1 It's a medium. Iced coffee, half decaf,

Speaker 1 extra ice,

Speaker 1 little bit of almond milk, and two pumps of that sweet butter pecan.

Speaker 1 And if that sweet nectar butter pecan wasn't already enough of a treat, you can also treat yourself to Duncan's $5 meal deal, which includes two wake-up wraps and a medium hot or iced coffee for $5.

Speaker 1 Order in the app ahead of time, like I do, or order in person at your favorite Duncan location. She's a two-time World Cup champion and gold medalist.

Speaker 1 She's also an entrepreneur, philanthropist, a champion of women's sports and equal pay. And she's also a fellow mom and current pregnant person.
Alex Morgan, welcome to Not Gonna Lie.

Speaker 2 Thanks for having me, Kylie.

Speaker 1 No, thank you so much for coming on. I want to start by touching on something that we're both currently experiencing.

Speaker 1 Congratulations. You are pregnant with your second.

Speaker 2 Thank you. And you with your

Speaker 1 fourth. Yes.
Wow, wow, wow.

Speaker 2 Amazing.

Speaker 1 How are you feeling?

Speaker 2 I'm feeling pretty good right now.

Speaker 2 I feel like since I got through retirement and I was playing up till I was three months pregnant, that was rough. And now it's like life is so much less stressful without sports.
Like, you can't even.

Speaker 2 I mean, you probably understand, but most people probably couldn't. And it's just so nice

Speaker 2 just giving my body like the time that it needs.

Speaker 1 So i'm good how are you we're like due very close like within a week

Speaker 1 yes we might we might i mean who knows maybe they're born on the same day um just not april fools i don't want that no let's not do that we could do like march 31st that'd be cool yeah sure

Speaker 1 your daughter is charlie

Speaker 1 um is that charlotte or her name is charlie her name's just charlie i love that so much we debated Charlie for our first, and then within,

Speaker 1 I think, six months, we had three different friends who named their kid Charlie. This was six years ago.
And

Speaker 1 Jason and I were like, shoot, no, we can't do Charlie.

Speaker 2 I know. It's working.

Speaker 1 It worked out why it is a Wyatt, but

Speaker 1 I love the name Charlie.

Speaker 1 Do you guys know?

Speaker 1 What name you're going with next? I am not asking what the name is.

Speaker 2 We have a shortlist

Speaker 2 and we have a favorite.

Speaker 1 You're ahead of us. Great.

Speaker 1 Going on the fourth, it's like a disaster. You've already used them all up.

Speaker 1 All bets are off.

Speaker 2 Especially for you.

Speaker 2 I believe you've said it's another girl. Correct.
So, I mean, four girls is really hard to figure out four names that you really like. Yes.
I mean,

Speaker 2 like, we know what we like as women, but we're also kind of indecisive. Don't tell men that

Speaker 2 because they think that we can, you know, make decisions on behalf of anyone and everyone, which we do, but we have this like.

Speaker 1 Because we're forced to, really.

Speaker 2 We're forced to.

Speaker 2 But yeah, that's... That's hard to have four of the same gender to try to come up with names.

Speaker 2 Although Wyatt is such a cute name, and now it's like we can pick from the boys' names, you know, Charlie, Wyatt.

Speaker 1 That's it. We're doing a little crossover action i feel like we have to lean a little bit towards those sort of gender neutral names for our fourth because we have wyatt elliott bennett

Speaker 1 so if we go if we do a full commit to a girly name at this point it would not sit well with the other three i think eventually they'll be like why why did they get a cute girly name how are you feeling about the jump from one to two i am actually really looking forward to it.

Speaker 2 I feel so my daughter is four and a half, so she'll be almost five when the next baby is born. So I think she'll be really helpful.

Speaker 2 Me and my husband just celebrated our 10-year wedding anniversary. So it's kind of weird, like having our second child after we've been married for 10 years.
That's not typical.

Speaker 2 So I think that we are overdue.

Speaker 1 I will say that

Speaker 1 my oldest,

Speaker 1 The way that she, so she's five now, the way she's getting excited for this next baby is very sweet to watch because she's very much in that phase of like i can get diapers i can fill up my own water bottle i can do these things independently and so to see her get so excited about getting another baby and her being having the opportunity to help is is very exciting to watch so

Speaker 2 which is great i mean they just need to have a task and it's perfect and they feel like they're with you but then still being helpful so yes now i also wanted to talk to you um about your retirement in our house, talked about retirement for quite some time

Speaker 1 before my husband actually decided to retire.

Speaker 1 What was that process like for you making that decision to retire from soccer?

Speaker 2 So I think that, you know, it really started last offseason. Well, actually, let me back up.
I.

Speaker 2 After the last World Cup in 20, in 2019, winning that World Cup, I was like, okay, I'm still pretty young. I still have a lot to give, but I'm happy with where I am.

Speaker 2 And like, I could, you know, not step on the soccer field again if I'm injured or I don't come back from having a baby and feel myself. So that's when we decided to have a baby.

Speaker 2 And then I did feel good and I missed it when I was pregnant. So I came back.
played in the Olympics. That was delayed a year.
And then the World Cup in 23. And at that point, I was just like,

Speaker 2 I don't know that there's much more that I can give. And I don't know that there's much more that I'm going to get.
Like I've, I've fulfilled everything I've wanted to do.

Speaker 2 I'm at a point now where there's a lot of other things that interest me. I'm building businesses off the field.

Speaker 2 I'm really busy and we're settled in San Diego and we're so happy. So throughout the offseason, I was.

Speaker 2 this last offseason i was like okay this is going to be my last year i think and then me and my husband had like two bottles of wine one night, and we just like, I just was super honest.

Speaker 2 And I think it was just like an epiphany. I was like, yeah, this is, this is it.
Like, this is the last year.

Speaker 2 Like, regardless of what happens, I want to go, of course, I want to try to go to the Olympics. I want to try to win a championship.

Speaker 2 I want to do all the things, but it doesn't really matter what happens throughout the season. I'm done no matter what.
Um, so I kind of just made that like commitment to myself.

Speaker 1 Um,

Speaker 2 And,

Speaker 2 you know, a lot of things didn't go planned.

Speaker 2 Baby also being part of that.

Speaker 2 It's weird to say I got knocked up

Speaker 1 after

Speaker 2 being with my husband for 17 years.

Speaker 2 So that was that was interesting to have a surprise pregnancy, but it like all worked out perfectly. And at the end of the day, I'm just so happy with the way that everything was meant to go down.

Speaker 1 Now,

Speaker 1 how did that feel to make the decision

Speaker 1 obviously prior to announcing it, but then making that decision and being able to sit with it through the season?

Speaker 1 Did it feel a little bit like you were able to soak in those moments a little bit more and have

Speaker 1 sort of that more sentimental feel to what you were experiencing?

Speaker 1 so that you could store those memories more appropriately to feel even more settled in your decision?

Speaker 2 Yeah, it did definitely feel like I was trying to take in every moment and like remember the small things a little bit more.

Speaker 2 And it's hard to say enjoy them more because I feel like I was in a constant state of stress and

Speaker 2 anxiety just with the two teams and

Speaker 2 not really have having told anyone that I was going to retire. I didn't want to say it too early because then I didn't want it to be this like whole big retirement tour.

Speaker 2 So

Speaker 2 it was, it was like this big dark secret in a way, but I was also trying to just take everything in like one last time, like by myself or with my family that knew.

Speaker 2 And the plan was always to then

Speaker 2 announce my retirement. When I did, it was just not to announce my retirement and play my last game like three days later because I had a

Speaker 2 because I was three months pregnant so that was kind of like the curveball in this all

Speaker 2 um but it was really nice like having that time knowing like this is a last like regardless and

Speaker 2 um just soaking it all in and knowing that like this is a lot of what I knew for the last like 15 years and that a lot of change was coming.

Speaker 2 And so I think I did pretty well to like prepare myself for that. But

Speaker 2 regardless, it was, it was way more emotional than I expected.

Speaker 2 I'm not really an emotional person. I don't like cry a lot.
I don't like show a lot of emotion.

Speaker 2 I don't know if that's because of sport or what, but I just feel like for a week, I was just like, would break down in the car by myself, just like crying. And not like a bad cry, just kind of like.

Speaker 1 Had to release it.

Speaker 2 Yeah.

Speaker 1 Yeah. Yep.

Speaker 1 Yeah.

Speaker 1 Now, do you feel

Speaker 1 like

Speaker 1 the superhero that it seems that you are considering that when you had Charlie, you came back, was it six months postpartum to play?

Speaker 2 I was playing, yeah, after like three.

Speaker 1 Yeah.

Speaker 1 And then to play the first three months of your pregnancy this time around, do you, do you feel like

Speaker 1 because I feel like we should like bow down to you a little bit at least.

Speaker 1 Because

Speaker 1 I always say one of the most twisted things about the beginning of pregnancy is like you don't say anything to anyone. And so people are- You're suffering the most, but

Speaker 1 are you? Yeah, are you good? It's like when someone once asked me my first pregnancy, um, they were like, You don't look so great. Are you okay? And I said, I'm really not feeling well.

Speaker 1 And they backed up and I was like, Nope, can't catch this. Like,

Speaker 1 it's one of those, but like doing both the postpartum

Speaker 1 stint, going back, and then also playing the beginning of a pregnancy. How

Speaker 1 like, do you feel like the superhero that you are? Because that is seems to me like an outstanding accomplishment.

Speaker 2 Well, I, you know, just having talked to a lot of other female athletes that have been through it, we all have our own journeys,

Speaker 2 you know, birth and complications or not, and then, you know, trying to do everything and wanting to be with your baby, but then also getting back to

Speaker 2 getting your body back to where it needs to be.

Speaker 2 So that was

Speaker 2 that was tough for sure. And then the Olympics were delayed.
And I was like, oh, I can actually go to the Olympics now that I didn't miss it because of COVID.

Speaker 2 So then I moved to London when my daughter was four months old because that was the only league that was up and running, really, during COVID, because the U.S. league wasn't up and running.

Speaker 2 So my husband

Speaker 2 regretfully told me, you should go just like play some games in England.

Speaker 1 And I was like, That's such a good idea.

Speaker 2 I should go do that. And three days later, I was on a flight to England.
And my husband was like, Wait, what?

Speaker 1 I was like, kind of joking.

Speaker 2 No, I went and I let like he was playing too in Florida. And

Speaker 2 so that was tough. But

Speaker 2 this time around, it's like so much different. And I'm really excited for the difference of the two

Speaker 2 pregnancies and births and just like

Speaker 2 infant stage, because I actually get to spend way more time with the baby.

Speaker 2 But going through the first months of pregnancy this time around were so rough because I was getting like crazy migraines, like super nauseous, so tired.

Speaker 2 And we were like flying to Panama, playing in 95-degree weather where it's like 100% humid. We were going through all these like coaching changes.

Speaker 2 And like, there was so much stress involved outside of this. And then I'm figuring out how I'm going to tell everyone that I'm like retiring and I'm pregnant and I'm done playing soccer for good.

Speaker 2 Oh, it was a lot. And I just feel like I would hold it together the moment I would enter the training facility and the moment I would leave.
It was just like I needed my bed like now.

Speaker 2 Like I was like not a real human at that time. Like with my daughter, I was just like, mom's tired.

Speaker 2 Please go with daddy or take your iPad.

Speaker 1 Yeah, it's like one of those where you're like, what can we do together while mom's horizontal? That's what that's the activity mom would like to opt into right now.

Speaker 1 You've sort of shifted gears in another way, making sure that women's sports

Speaker 1 are appropriately represented. What sort of led you in that direction?

Speaker 2 Women have been betting on ourselves, especially female athletes, our whole lives. So, why not do this as an extension of that? So,

Speaker 2 building together

Speaker 2 over like from 2018, 19, 20, and launching it in 21 was another thing of just like betting on myself and being like, there are incredible stories that female athletes, um, have not told that I want to give a platform to.

Speaker 2 Um, there's a community of female athletes and fans that want to feel like there's a place that they can like call home in that, um,

Speaker 2 in that it's, you know, somewhere that they feel like women's sports is at the the forefront. So that's where Together was like born out of.

Speaker 2 And we highlight anything and everything, not just like the big sports and, you know, soccer and basketball and Olympic sports, but we've done a,

Speaker 2 you know, girls' skating club in New York City. We highlighted, you know, surfers in Hawaii and

Speaker 2 female boxers and

Speaker 2 anyone and everyone

Speaker 1 that

Speaker 2 we feel like never really had the platform before that's what we want to provide to them and now we're in our fourth year and it's going really well and i'm very proud of the work that we've done for anyone who isn't familiar with it um

Speaker 1 together is the company responsible for um the

Speaker 1 everyone watches women's sports uh shirts which if you have not seen them you're living under a rock uh a rock literally right um i have seen them everywhere.

Speaker 1 I mean, it is, and for those of you who might miss the mark,

Speaker 1 it is in response to people saying no one watches women's sports.

Speaker 1 And now for a reading of that fictional Duncan-inspired short film you definitely asked for. The part of Kylie will be played by

Speaker 1 me.

Speaker 1 And the stage direction you're hearing from that just

Speaker 1 voice will be read by Queen Emma. And action.

Speaker 1 Interior, Duncan, Cabrini University, 2014. A team of field hockey players led by Kylie McDevitt, tall, destined for podcast stardom, walks through the front door.
Kylie looks around in awe.

Speaker 1 Ah, Duncan really is beautiful this time of year, isn't it? Kylie's teammates nod furiously in agreement. Kylie approaches the register.
Hi, can I please get a medium hot...

Speaker 1 You know what? Make it a large. I have a Tinder date later and I don't want to fall asleep at the table.
How embarrassing would that be? Everyone inside Duncan laughs heartily. Can you imagine?

Speaker 1 Suddenly, Kylie smells something wonderful.

Speaker 1 Hang on.

Speaker 1 Is that a new flavor I smell? It's buttery with a hint of...

Speaker 1 Is that pecan?

Speaker 1 The cashier points to a giant sign promoting Duncan's butter pecan iced coffee standing directly next to Kylie. Forget everything I just said.
I want one of those.

Speaker 1 Kylie takes one sip and suddenly the whole world makes sense.

Speaker 1 That

Speaker 1 hits.

Speaker 1 Yeah, this is going to be a good day.

Speaker 1 End scene.

Speaker 1 One of your biggest accomplishments

Speaker 1 in sports

Speaker 1 you accomplished off the field. You are

Speaker 1 a massive advocate for equal pay. Can you tell me a little bit about that process, that journey, and

Speaker 1 what that meant to you?

Speaker 2 Yeah,

Speaker 1 that's probably,

Speaker 2 if someone asked like my greatest achievement,

Speaker 2 I don't know that like it's

Speaker 2 my biggest goal I've ever scored or

Speaker 2 the World Cup or the Olympics.

Speaker 2 it's achieving equal pay on the international stage and creating that sort of domino effect or as we like to say butterfly effect that helped other women and in other countries and in the u.s

Speaker 2 um with their leagues and their teams um fight for um equality in their sport um and outside of sport too

Speaker 2 uh it was many years of fighting with our employer, which was weird to show up and be working, you know, playing on behalf of U.S. soccer and going and, you know, having these meetings.

Speaker 2 And I was a part of, you know, the Athletes Council. So I would go and I'd see everything.
I would see, I would see people on other councils step up and say,

Speaker 2 you guys don't deserve as much as you're getting because, or as much as you're trying to get. You're going to be taking away from the kids and you're going to be taking away from these other.

Speaker 2 And I'm like, we're not trying to take away from anyone else. We're just trying to get what we deserve.
We open the books.

Speaker 2 We're seeing the revenue that we're bringing in, it's just as much as the men. Irregardless, we should still be getting the same contracts, irregardless of that.

Speaker 2 But seeing the revenue, we're like, and we have proof, and you're still fighting us.

Speaker 1 Um,

Speaker 2 without all this investment, without us on prime time, without us like getting on TV as much as the men, um, without FIFA stepping up and compensating the federation for the women's side as much as they do for the men's side.

Speaker 2 So, all of these things, we had a great argument,

Speaker 2 a great PR team, great legal team, and achieved equal pay finally in 2022. And that was like a moment that it was like, okay, this has changed forever.
And it, you know, it's not just like

Speaker 2 the ones who were named in the lawsuit and the, you know, us that kind of like followed through with it, but it was also the ones that started it, you know, the Mia Hams, Julie Faudi, Brandon Tostain, all of them that really

Speaker 2 went around the country in 99, like selling tickets for the Women's World Cup, like by themselves to get people into the stadiums to be like, watch this, you'll enjoy this product, trust me.

Speaker 2 And fans did. And

Speaker 2 it was incredible. But, you know, it started back then.
And I feel like it was just like us continuing on that fight.

Speaker 2 But we got to a point where it could not continue on any longer like this. And

Speaker 2 that's where we were able to settle and achieve equal pay and back pay.

Speaker 1 Now,

Speaker 1 how do you see that impacting

Speaker 1 the players that are currently playing, the players that will step into those roles in the next few years and generations from now?

Speaker 1 How do you see that impacting them? Like,

Speaker 1 what stressors does that take off of them, or what does that say to them

Speaker 1 and their contributions to the team?

Speaker 2 Yeah, well, I mean, they just don't have to have the distraction of

Speaker 2 fighting their employer over how many coaches are there in comparison to the men. The fact that we used to get commercial flights and like I sat on a middle seat to London in 2012 for the Olympics.

Speaker 2 Like the back seat, like the bathroom was behind my back in a middle seat.

Speaker 2 Just like not having to worry about that

Speaker 2 is great for these players. And I think that's like

Speaker 2 what we, some of us like older, more experienced players

Speaker 2 who were going through this lawsuit and really, really spearheading it like day to day with our legal team realized is like, we're not necessarily going to be the beneficiaries of this lawsuit more than

Speaker 2 more than actually like the 18, 21 year olds that are just coming in because they're going to be the ones that hopefully won't even know a difference between the women's team and the men's team.

Speaker 2 They won't even really understand that at one point, not only was the pay vastly different, but the treatment and like the flights, the number of people on staff, etc., were

Speaker 2 always, always, always a hot topic for discussion and always a fight that we had to

Speaker 2 bring to the table. Like there was nothing ever given.

Speaker 2 And now for them to step into it and just have to play, I mean, no wonder the quality has just like gone through the roof um which is why it was like easier for me to retire because i was like

Speaker 1 i

Speaker 2 am not the best anymore and i am fine with that because there are 21 year olds that um that are far better than me and are gonna go far

Speaker 2 more places and gonna score far more goals than i do and that's exactly what i fought for was the opportunity for them to be able to do that and just like worry about playing soccer not worry about having to fight for making enough money to be able to play soccer.

Speaker 1 And how badass is it that Charlie's mom did that?

Speaker 1 You know what I mean?

Speaker 1 Like, you like, besides all of the women that you're impacting that are coming onto the team that are benefiting from the push that you and other players have made and that commitment that you guys made to make that change,

Speaker 1 but

Speaker 1 you are setting the example for your own daughter that when things are not acceptable, that you raise your voice and you speak up and stand up in a way that people have to listen. And

Speaker 1 I just think it's incredible that outside of all of the women that are directly impacted by this in the league, that you also have set that example for your own daughter, that that's how you can sort of advocate for yourself and others.

Speaker 2 Yeah, and I think the the fight was always like personal but when I had a daughter I was like, okay, it's even more personal now like I

Speaker 2 This just hits home even more

Speaker 1 in the 15 years that you were on the national team

Speaker 1 You were such an icon that you Even had a Barbie made of you I did a Barbie I gave my daughter when she was like five months old and she like bit the head off so yeah naturally Naturally.

Speaker 1 Do you have

Speaker 1 a full understanding of how many households you have been a staple in, how many young women you have been in the lives of and they've been able to watch you and cheer you on in any capacity?

Speaker 1 Does that fully register with you?

Speaker 1 Especially now that you're retired and it's sort of like looking back on your career?

Speaker 2 That's a hard question because I

Speaker 2 want to think that I do, but I, but I feel like it's, it is, it is hard to comprehend

Speaker 2 because I surround myself with like just

Speaker 2 so much family and friends that

Speaker 2 I'm just like Alex to them, or I'm mom, or I'm a sister, whatever, a wife. So

Speaker 2 it's really nice that it's just like normal

Speaker 1 with all of them.

Speaker 2 And so, in a way, I feel like maybe I don't like fully comprehend. Like, when someone's like, oh, my daughter has you all over her wall and this or that.
I'm like, oh, that's so awesome.

Speaker 2 Like, I'm so glad that I could help her, you know, in her journey with soccer, whatever it is.

Speaker 2 But do I fully comprehend it? Maybe not.

Speaker 1 I think that,

Speaker 1 I think that to some degree, when you specifically are an athlete and you have come to this place that you have come to through playing your sport and obviously doing all of the things that you took it upon yourself to do in conjunction with that, but specifically getting there

Speaker 1 by playing your sport.

Speaker 1 I feel like your brain kind of says, like, I was just playing my sport. Like, I was, I was playing soccer.
What do you mean?

Speaker 1 And so obviously, you were an elite athlete and you were contributing to like massive titles, but it's,

Speaker 1 I think, probably, and please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that it is one of those things where you're just like, well, I was, I was playing soccer and that's how we got here with my teammates.

Speaker 1 And so to,

Speaker 1 I, I just, knowing the way that I have heard people talk about you, both my own peers and then people younger than me.

Speaker 1 And the fact that even to this day, I could bring up your name with my high school athletes.

Speaker 1 And I know for a fact that they would know who you are, which is really saying something because I swear some of them are so disconnected from

Speaker 1 like

Speaker 1 everything.

Speaker 1 But I just, I

Speaker 1 am so grateful to have people like you. I say it all the time, now raising daughters.
It makes me hyper-aware of the people who have been role models to young women.

Speaker 1 But I just think it's incredible that you not only went on to just absolutely run shit on the soccer field, but then also off the field, make sure that your impact was not only long-lasting, but benefited women for

Speaker 1 ever now.

Speaker 2 Thank you. I really appreciate it.

Speaker 2 I think, having just a strong like female figure in my life, like I do with my mom, um, having three girls, she,

Speaker 1 um,

Speaker 2 you know, worked during the day, did night school, always made sure to be present for us in all of our sporting events, um, always had dinner on the table, like almost feel like um, did it all.

Speaker 2 And you're like wondering, how, like,

Speaker 2 I'm thinking back to myself, thinking, I have one child and barely surviving, like, how did she do it?

Speaker 1 Um,

Speaker 2 I think like helps. Like,

Speaker 2 when I, you know, growing up, I'm like, oh, I feel like I can do it all too. She did it all.
Um, so I think that that, that has definitely helped me throughout throughout my career.

Speaker 1 I feel like when you're lucky to get one of those moms where you're just like, how'd you do it? Uh,

Speaker 1 we like, I am the same way all the time. I will be like, How did you do that? And how do I do that too? Yeah, I would like to

Speaker 1 to share with me. Yes.
Mom, how do I not mess this up?

Speaker 1 I cannot thank you enough for popping on today.

Speaker 1 It has been an absolute pleasure to talk to you.

Speaker 2 I mean, I just want to say thanks for doing this podcast and

Speaker 2 make and just like, it's so amazing to see. you just like being really raw and honest and just how that's what people love to hear and need and like resonate with.

Speaker 2 So I'm just so happy to be on this podcast.

Speaker 1 No, thank you so much for spending the time with us. And thank you for all the things that you've done for women in sports that you continue to do now.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 1 it has been an absolute pleasure to watch you play and now to continue off the field in all of your accomplishments. So thank you again for coming on Knock and a Lie Today.
Of course.

Speaker 1 Thank you so much again to my guest, Alex Morgan, for joining me.

Speaker 1 Once again, these episodes are capped capped at 45 minutes, so you'll be able to find even more exclusive clips on More Shit Monday on my YouTube channel.

Speaker 1 And that does it for episode five of Not Gonna Lie. I'll be back next Thursday with a brand new episode.
Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

Speaker 1 Follow the show on all social media at NGL with Kylie. Not gonna lie is a wave original brought to you by Duncan.
Thank you guys again for tuning in.